Waiting
by Da Ultimate Panda
Summary: You always waited for him, and he always returned. At least, that was how it used to be. Adult!Reborn x Reader


The night air was still and silent, as suffocating as a heavy blanket thrown carelessly over your face, pressing heavily upon your chest and stealing your breath. You were as motionless as a statue, your back ramrod straight as you sat in a chair by the window, as if defying the weight of the world's burdens laid upon your shoulders. It was on nights like this when you felt uneasy, your loneliness a toxic fog clogging up your mind, poisoning your thoughts with its evil whispers, playing upon your anxious insecurities with its icy fingers. You curled your hands into fists, fingernails biting into the tender flesh of your palm. You knew from the beginning that being the lover of the renown hitman Reborn wasn't going to be easy, but you had accepted the challenge determinedly, driven by your feelings and rose-coloured lenses that shattered little by little each time he left for a mission, both of you never knowing when he will return. The constant worry was slowly driving you out of your mind, your frayed nerves wrecking your body and soul as you waited for your raven-haired lover to return to your side once more, perhaps not completely uninjured but still _there_, a warm, comforting presence that lit you up inside with a tranquil glow and made smiles bloom like exotic flowers across your face, the customary butterflies in your stomach slowing down from their usual stormy frenzy into a gentle flutter at the sight of his face, the ghostly crescent moon of his half-smile the only hint of his happiness upon seeing you again.

But tonight, he wasn't here. Tonight, you were on your own once more. You focused your gaze on the shadowy darkness outside your room, but your mind couldn't help wandering. Where was he? Is he safe? When will he come back? These thoughts were your perpetual companions, feeding your worries and fears, the permanent thorns embedded in your side that kept drawing fresh blood despite your best efforts to remain stationary. You blinked hard, suddenly aware of the salty tears brimming in your eyes, threatening to overflow and stream down your face any moment. "No," you whispered fiercely, gritting your teeth against the destructive onslaught of emotions. "Not tonight." Tonight, you were going to be as strong as him, if not stronger. Tonight, you were going to be a warrior, a female soldier. Tonight, you were not going to give in to your fears, but conquer them once and for all. Tonight, you were going to be okay, just like how you are going to be okay for the many nights yet to come.

Somewhere in your mind's eye, you heard the faint creaking of the opening door, as clear as the ringing of a church bell. Somewhere in your mind's eye, you heard the soft click, click, click of his leather shoes tapping on the wooden floorboards, a rhythm as familiar to you as the beating of your own heart. Somewhere in your mind's eye, you felt him embracing you lovingly, holding you in the protective circle of his arms, his trademark chuckle a musical masterpiece in your ear. Somewhere in your mind's eye, you felt your worries sink back into the bottomless abyss in your heart, replaced by an ecstasy that was spreading to every crevice of your body, almost overwhelming you with its soothingly warm caress.

The corners of your mouth finally curved upwards in a smile, your lips parting gently to form the words that you have longed to utter for what had seemed like centuries. They escaped in a breathy exclamation, soaring in the air with their newfound wings, as joyful and liberated as caged birds released from their prison at last.

"Welcome home, Reborn."

And that was when the both of you knew that everything was going to be okay.

~Alternate Angsty Ending~

Outside your open door, Tsuna flinched and yanked his fingers away from the doorframe as if scalded by your words. He stared worriedly at your hunched form, and his heart sank even further as he noticed your vacant, bloodshot eyes flitting everywhere in an obsessive glare, accompanied by a mad, wide smile that nearly split your gaunt face in half. A babble of nonsensical words emerged from your grotesquely stretched lips in an incessant stream, nearly tripping over one another in their haste to be heard. You were twitching spasmodically, hands twisted into a nervous knot in your bony lap, untangling themselves every now and then to find their way to your mouth for you to chew at and gnaw off a bleeding cuticle, ground into bitter powder beneath your rotting molars.

By now, the entire Vongola Famiglia had gathered outside your room and was taking in this pathetic scene in silent agony, unspoken words condensing into a smothering, painful fog that made it difficult for everyone to breathe. They knew if they said those words out loud, it will only serve to poison the air further, coating their mouths with the thick, sticky taste of grief. They knew if they said those words out loud, it will only serve to push you further into the dark chasm of your disillusions, until you were too far away for anyone to reach you. They knew that if they said those words out loud, your broken mind will snap even more, disintegrating into dust and ashes that will flood your entire being and buy it beneath their endless weight.

And so for that night, they twisted the handle on the door and closed it once again, shutting out your grief and madness, cutting off the stale air tainted by your insanity. They would wait, they decided silently. They would wait for you to get better, for you to get stronger so they can help you hold your head up high. They would wait, they decided, for you to calm down, for you to emerge from your unrealistically sweet delusions so they can help conquer the malicious beast within you. They would wait, they decided, for you to be back to your usual self again, for you to get up from Reborn's favourite armchair and leave the room so that they can finally tell you what had truly happened.

They would wait, they decided, until you were able to cope with the truth, so that they can tell you that Reborn was dead, and he will never return to your side again no matter how long you waited for him.


End file.
